CAB seeks HC intervention

A writ petition has been filed with the High Court challenging the inaction of the government bodies concerned to prevent arbitrary and illegal pricing of drugs by pharmaceutical companies in the country.
The Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB), represented by Alamgir Kabir, member secretary of the national committee for consumer complaints handling, filed the petition on Sunday.
In the petition, the CAB prayed to the court to issue a rule upon the respondents to show cause as to why inaction of the Secretary of Health Services Division and the Director General of the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) in not fixing the price of all drugs under Section 30 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 2023 should not be declared illegal.
It also prayed to issue a rule as to why the Health Services Division and the DGDA should not be directed to fix the price of drugs after formulation of the rules under Section 76 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, and as to why the respondents should not be directed to prevent the companies from selling any drug of which prices have not been fixed by the Secretary of the Health Services Division.
Pending hearing on the rule, the petitioner also prayed to formulate a judicial guideline on the methods for fixing price of drugs and direct the respondents to follow the same until a rule is framed for fixation of the price of drugs.
The High Court bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Atabullah held hearing on the petition on Sunday and fixed today for passing an order.
Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua appeared in the court hearing on behalf of the writ petitioner, while Deputy Attorney General Tushar Kanti Roy represented the state.
According to the petition, the government is supposed to fix the price of drugs by notification in the official gazette but since the year 2000, no such gazette notification has ever been published by the government.
The Drugs Act, 1940 and the Drugs (Control) Ordinance, 1982 contained the similar provision which had not been followed intentionally and with malafide intention to facilitate the private pharmaceutical companies to make unreasonable and predatory profit.
Therefore, the price of different drugs fixed from the year 2000 is illegal and as such the inaction of the respondents in not taking effective measures to fix the price of all drugs under Section 30 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act 2023 is liable to be declared illegal.
The government after 21 years of silence since the year 2000 published a circular on July 20 in 2022 giving effect to the previously fixed prices of drugs which were illegally and arbitrarily fixed by the companies.
Another circular was published on December 4, 2022 similarly giving effect to the previously fixed price.
Instead of refixing the price of drugs, the government just legalised the price fixed by the companies.
Being the regulatory authorities, the DGDA has failed to perform its duty as required by law.

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